Nyack parents: Good News Club is bad news

<p>Nyack parents are accusing a group called the &quot;Good News Club&quot; of being &quot;bad news&quot; for their kids.</p>

News 12 Staff

Nov 1, 2018, 12:20 AM

Updated 2,183 days ago

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Nyack parents are accusing a group called the "Good News Club" of being "bad news" for their kids.
They say a flyer went home with students at a Nyack elementary school about an after-school program run by The Good News Club.
"There are literally flashcards, flashcards for small children explaining why Jews need to be converted so they don't go to hell," says parent Jennifer Maslowski.
Parents also tell News 12 that students were given treats from those running the program in hopes they'd join the group.
The Good News Club is headquartered in Missouri, but its mission is to evangelize children everywhere.
Parents are calling for the program to be removed.

Maslowski knows getting rid of the program would be an uphill battle because "The Good News Club" has been there before.

"But I've heard that the materials have changed significantly since 2001 and their tactics have changed since 2001, but it hasn't been looked at again," she says.

In 2001, the case of The Good News Club vs. the Milford Central School District in New York made its way to the highest court. The superintendent for Nyack Public Schools wrote in part, "the United States Supreme Court found that it would violate the First Amendment for a school district that opens itself to a limited public forum to exclude a group based upon its viewpoint."

Despite angered parents and confused students, The Good News Club says it isn't breaking any laws. It wrote in part, "Good News Clubs are open to all children in grades kindergarten through fifth grade. The only requirement for a child to attend is to have a registration form signed by parents. Parents are always welcome to attend."

The superintendent of Nyack schools says they cannot exclude the program simply because of its religious viewpoint.